Apparatus for brazing or similar work.



G. R. STURDBVANT.

APPARATUS FOR BRAZING 0R SIMILAR WORK. APPLICATION 21mm JULY 9, 1910.

1,000,456. Patented Aug. 15,1911.

2 8KEBTl-8KEET 1.

IN VEIITOR J/d ATTORNEVJ' G. R. STURDEVANT.

APPARATUS FOR BRAZING OR SIMILAR WORK.

APPLICATION FILED JULYQ, 19-10.

1 9 n no N 00 um m d2 m n 6 t a P ATTORIV E Y5 j I my NTOR 1 6 67 mm Al;

CHARLES R. STURDEVANT, OF XVGRCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO THE AMERICAN STEEL 6: WIRE (101V TEANY, 03E HOBGKEN, NEW JERSEY, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

APPARATUS FOR BKAZING OR SIMILAR WORK.

LOGOAiEG.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, CHARLES R. S'rtnmnvan'r, a citizen of the United States, residing at \Voreester, Massachusetts, have invented new and useful Improvements in Apparatuses for Brazing or Similar lVork, of which the following is a specification.

This invention ims to provide certain improvements in apparatuses for brazing or similar work and especially for brazing or soldering the terminals of bonds to rails of electric railroads. The entire apparatus is adapted to be mounted on a car and run along a track which is being bonded and the support and other parts of the apparatu; are conveniently arranged so that the work may be done with a minimum labor and time and without. interterei'ice with traltie. The

car or other vehicle constitutes the subject matter of a separate application for patent in the name of l ldward \V. Vaughn pendinv concurrently herewith and is provided with apparatus for transforming, regulating and conducting the electric eurrent and for various other operations. The present application to the apparatus, preferably carried on such a car, for supporting and shifting, adjusting or otherwise manipulating the clamp which holds the bond terminal to the rail and through which the current is applied.

The accon'ipanying drawings illustrate an embodiment of this invention applied to a car.

Figure 1 is an end elevation, partly in section. Fig. 2 is a side elevation. Fig. I is a horizontal section at about the level of the floor of the car.

Referring to the embodiment of the invention illustrated the car carries on its forward end a bracket A. comprising an inner circular ball race B and an outer rail (.3 constituting part oi. a circle concentric with the race B. A transformer D has a base E resting upon the balls in the race B so as to permit the transformer to turn freely about a vertical axis. The base orcarricr l) of the transformer has a divided leg 1* extending downward through the bracket A and carrying arms (in and H pivotally attached to the leg I and whichat' their outer ends are connected by pivotal connections to a clamp comprising members J and K. This clamp Specification of Letters Patent. Pgatgfliggd A 0; 15, 1 911.

Application filed July 9. 1910.

Serial No. 571,170.

per se is made the subject matter of a separate application for patent pendingcon- 'currently herewith (No. 571169, filed July 9,

1910) and is not claimed in the present application except in combination with the other parts of the apparatus. Itv comprises the two members J and K adapted for relative vertical adjustment by means of the screw L and for relative transverse and angular adjustments by means of the screws lvll and N. v

The members of the clamp are connected by n'ieans of cables 0 and P to opposite poles of the transformer D whereby the brazing current is transmitted from the transformer to the clamp members and thence through the carbon elect-rode Q and bond terminal and the rail R. The swivel mounting of the transformer arid of the leg F permits the clamp to be readily'swung, about from the rail at one side to that at the opposite side, the weight of the clamp to be shifted being very little so that the work can proceed very expeditiously.

Supported upon the side of the transformer is a field regulator S which controls the alternating current generator voltage by means of a hand wheel T and which turns about a vertical axis with the transformer, thus always being on the side of the transformer adjacent to the clamp. When the clamp is in position on the rail the regulator hand wheel T is directly accessible to the operator so that he can regulate'the Welding current by regulating the field of the alternator which excites the transformer;

The connection between the clamp and the transfmrmer-carrying' base or frame is adapted to be adjusted in several different ways. The first adjustment is a longitudinal extension. For this purpose each of the arms G and ll is provided Wltlll} tubular portion in which slides a rod U carrying at its end a. bracket, connected by a vertical pivot with a link V which in turn is connected by" a horizontal pivot with the mem-, ber J of the clamp. The longitudinal adjustment. is effected freely by simply pushing the clamp inward or outward until it is approximately in its proper position and then dropping and clamping it to the rail,

the sliding connection yielding inward or outward to permit. it. to adjust itself properly in the clamping operation. The second adjustment is permitted by thehorizontalpivot connections at opposite ends of the arms so that the clamp may be lifted and swung over the rail and then dropped down to the desired position, all with a substantially parallel movement. The third adjustment due to the vertical pivots between the links V and the ends of the rods U, these vertical pivots being approximately in line with each other, whereby the clamp can be turned in a horizontal plane without turning the arms G and H.

The various horizontal movements of the clamp are unrestricted and can be eilected simply by pushing or pulling the clamp into position. The clamp can thus be set to the point desired with the greatest and quickest facility. The weightof the clamp is sup ported and its vertical adjustments quickly effected by means of a rod connected to the arm G and adapted to be raised or lowered by any suitable means. 1 or example, as shown, the rod is provided with teeth at its upper end forming a rack passing through a' casing in which is a pinion and gearing driven by a hand. wheel Y connected by suitable speed reducing gear to the pinion which raises or lowers the rod, so tha" the rod, and the clamp, will remain in the vertical position of adjustment to which it; is set by the hand wheel The casing carrying the gearing is connected to the base or frame E which carries the transtormer and the hand wheel Y on the side adjacent to the clamp "for greater convenience. in order to avoid too great an eccentric load upon the ball race the gear casing X is pivotally connected to the frame E and runs upon the fixed circular track C which surrounds the ball race and is rigidly mounted on the end of the car, an antitrietion roller being ar 'anged to bear upon the track. The weight of the electric cables 0 and l is also largely taken off the t ans'l ormer by fastening an interi'nediate point of them in the clamps a upon the casing X.

In brazing a rail bond to the rail the clamp is shifted to position and dropped to the proper level to bring the welding carbon Q at the lower end of the clamp arm ll i against the bond terminal and the clamp arms are fl(l]t1StGtl to press them toward the rail. The welding current is then switched onand passes through the carbon and the terminal and the rail from one clamp an to the other, completing the circuit througl the transformer, the carbon becoming .vhite hot by reason of its internal resistance. and the heat of tne carbon etl eeting the bra/1' of the terminal to the rail. \Vhen the open ation is completed the clamp arms are loosened and the entire clamp lifted an inch or so to bring it above the rail by means of the hand Wheel Y. Supposing the joints in the opposite rails to be staggered the car is then moved along a short distance to the next joint on the opposite rail and the clamp swung around the vertical axis of the bearing ring B and dropped and adjusted for the nextvbrazing operation.

The construction of the pivoted f'ame l) and the flexible cables and flexible connections of the clamp to said. frame secure a maximum degree of flexibility and case oi adjustmentthroughout the entire device.

The apparatus provides the very important carbon is the immediate source of the tlier-' mal energy required for brazing. The bon'has considerable mass, and a certain amount of time and electrical energy required to raise it. to a white hot tea )eracure before the brazing ction begins. -csoon as a brazing operatioi'i is completed the current. must be cut. off and the carbon will tend to cool rapidly; therefore, the sooner the same carbon can be placed in position :l'or the next operation and the current restored the less electrical energy as well as time is required to bring it to a brazing tenuicrature. Thus the use of a single carbon. for doing the work on the rails at both sides of the track results in a maximum saving of time and electrical energy as conu iared with apparatus which have two sets of clamping devices and two carbol'is, one for each rail. .l n the latter case the carbon of one clamp becomes quite cold while making a bond with the opposite clamp. V

The use of a single also le ens the weight as compared with cars carry ing two claims by eliminating one of the clanuiing devices and one set oi. connectingcables.

Another advantage of the described construetiim in applying bonds around switches or other special :iil'ttcli worl" the e):- tcnsible connection of the clamp to port pern'iitting the clamp to be pulled outward a considerable distance from the center so as to work upon an adjoining rail without moving the car. That. is to say, with the car in any one position the radius of usefulness increased on account ofthe flexibility and extensibility of the connection.

Though I have described with great particularity of detail certain specific embodiments of the invention yet it is not to be device for both rails oi he car equipment lie understood therefrom that the invention is restricted to tlre particular embodiments described. Various modifications in detail and in the arrangement and combination of the parts may be made by those skilled in the art without departure from the invention.

What I claim is:

1. An apparatus of the class described, including in combination a bearing on the end of a car, a transformer support carried by said bearing and rotatable on a vertical axis, a transformer carried directly by said support, a clamp and an extensible support between said clamp and said support, whereby the clamp may be swung with the transformer about a vertical axis to shift it from one rail to another of the track and may be shifted outward or inward from its vertical axis.

2. An apparatus of the class described, including in combination a transformer mounted rotatably about a vertical axis and a clamp mounted to rotate with said transformer and to be vertically adjustable relatively thereto.

3. An apparatus of the class described, including in combination a transformer mounted rotatably about a vertical axis and a clamp ,mounted to rotate with said transformer and to be adjustable horizontally relatively thereto. Y

4. An apparatus of the class described, including in combination a support rotatable about a vertical axis, a clamp and connecting means attached to said clamp and connected by a horizontal pivot to said support.

5. An apparatus of'the class descr1bed,

including in combination a support rotatable about a vertical axis, a clamp and connecting means connected by horizontal pivots to said clamp and said support respectively.

6. An apparatus of the class described, including incombination a support rotatable about a vertical axis, a clamp and extensible connecting means between said clamp and said support.

7. An apparatus of the class described, including in combination a support and arms pivotally supported thereby and adapted to carry a clamp pivoted to their outer ends.

8. An apparatus of the class described, including in combination a support and a pair of arms arranged one above the other and pivotally supported by said support so as to swing in a substantially vertical direction and adapted to carry a substantially vertical clamp pivoted to their outer ends, said arms being mounted also to swing about a vertical axis to shift said clamp from one rail to the other.

9. An apparatus of the class described, including in combination a support and a pair of arms pivotally supported thereby and adapted to carry a clamp pivoted to their outer ends, at least one of said arms being adjustable in length to vary the angle of said clamp.

10. An apparatus of the class described, including in combination a support and a pair of arms pivotally supported thereby and adapted to carry a clamp pivoted to their outer ends, both said arms being adjustable in length to vary the lateral position and the angle of said clamp.

11. An apparatus of the class described, including in combination a support and a pair of arms arranged one above the'other and pivotally supported by said support so as'to swing in a substantially'vertical direction and adapted to carry a substantially vertical clamp pivoted to their outer ends, said arms being monntedalso to swing about a vertical axis to shiftsaid clamp from one rail to the other, and a transformer adapted for connection with the members of said clamp and adapted to turn with said arms about a vertical axis. 7

12. An apparatus of the class described, including in combination a support, aclamp and a pair of connecting arms each pivotally connected at one end to the clamp and at the other end to the support at vertically separated points of said clamp and said support respectively so as to secure a sub stantially parallel vertical motion of said clamp. I

13. An appa aims of the class described, including in combination a support, a clan'lp, and a pair of connecting arms each pivotally connected at one end to the clamp and at the other end to the support at vert-ically separated points of said clamp and said support respectively so as to secure a substantially parallel vertical motion of said clamp, said support being rotatable abou. a vertical axis.

14. An apparatus of the class described,

including in combination a support, a clamp, and a pair of connecting arms each pivotally connected at one end to the clamp and at the other end to the support at vertically separated points of said clamp and said support respectively so as to secure a substantially parallel vertical motion of said clamp, said support being rotatable about a vertical axis, and said arms being extens sible in length.

15. An apparatus of the class described, including in combination a support and a clamp connected to said support and adapted to turn relatively to said support about a vertical axis. 4

in. An apparatus of the class desctt 'fied, including in combination a pair of supporting arms and a clamp carried thereby, said arms being separately extensible to permit an angular movement of the clamp.

17. An apparatus of the class described, In witness whereof, I have hereunto including in combination a transformer and I signed my name in the presence pf two sub- :1 ehunp adapted to be swung together about scribing Witnesses.

a vertical axis passing through the trans- CHARLES R. S'IURDEV ANT. former so as to avoid bodily movement of Vitnesses:

the transformer while permitting a shift of KENNETH HALSTEAD,

the clamp from one rail to another 1). ANTHONY Usmzi. 

